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EAST LANSING – So much can be overanalyzed in two months, which is exactly the amount of time we have to wait for No. 2 Michigan State at No. 1 Ohio State.

Yes, that's No. 2 MSU and No. 1 OSU. If that Nov. 21 game at Ohio Stadium happened today, it would involve the top two teams in the Associated Press poll.

By then, we will have a list that actually counts — the College Football Playoff selection committee rankings, which start Nov. 3 — and both teams will be right there if both teams are 10-0. Unless they get there with 50-0 romps each week, we'll have a lot of questions for them.

At Ohio State, we're wondering about the offense and the quarterback situation after Saturday's 20-13 home evasion of Northern Illinois. At Michigan State, this is new enough that mental approach will be an ongoing topic, even though Mark Dantonio's history as coach says it shouldn't be.

"We always talk about it, it's a one-step process every day to becoming a national champion, a national contender," MSU senior safety RJ Williamson said after Saturday's 35-21 victory over Air Force, which made MSU 31-1 as a ranked team against unranked opponents under Dantonio. "Every day in practice and then game day."

No, the real question for Michigan State is about bodies, not brains. The preseason loss of senior linebacker Ed Davis to a knee injury already guaranteed this team would finish with worse health luck than the 2013 and 2014 MSU teams that combined to go 24-3.

"I think we've got guys," Dantonio said Sunday as he talked about MSU's long-term options. "We've got guys that can run and tackle and play the ball in the deep part of the field and they have size and speed for their position."

And then Dantonio added: "Obviously, we still miss Vayante. He was a great player, a great tackler."

If it seems excessive to base the outlook of a defense on a guy who has played 1.75 games, go back to watch those seven quarters of football. Copeland was hyped in camp and lived up to it right away, playing with physicality, speed and swagger. He was MSU's best defensive back.

Arjen Colquhoun, Jermaine Edmondson and Darian Hicks continue to compete for the spot opposite Demetrious Cox, who has made a successful switch to cornerback. That's three guys with experience in a program that develops corners, but none of the three appears to have Copeland's ceiling.

They competed through the spring and fall, and Copeland emerged. Now it's possible Dantonio gives a true freshman a look, perhaps Josh Butler or David Dowell, but that's not easy — Copeland's absence in 2014 and performance early this season illustrate what a year in the program can mean.

Amid the doom here, it should be mentioned that Davis was supposed to be an irreplaceable piece, and Jon Reschke and Chris Frey have been terrific in his place.

But it also should be mentioned that MSU's offensive line hasn't looked the same since right tackle Kodi Kieler went down with a knee injury early in the Oregon game. When will he return? Will he be the same when he does? There are no answers yet.

MSU's injury luck is on a bad run. The race to Nov. 21 is turning into a test of the depth in Dantonio's program, and a scramble for another standout at a hugely important position.

"I think we have good football players on this team," Dantonio said. "And that will not be an excuse not to win."

Contact Joe Rexrode: jrexrode@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @joerexrode. Check out his MSU blog at freep.com/heyjoe. Download our new Spartans Xtra app for free on Apple and Android devices!